UEFA President Platini appears to take sides against Palestine and for Israeli racism

Ynet reports that UEFA President Platini had told Israeli FA representative Avi Luzon of the Palestinian FA’s plan to raise a motion to “isolate the Jewish State”.

Platini allegedly advised that Israel must start working to avert that possibility. “This time it is serious,” he apparently warned, saying that there were several countries that would side with the Palestinians “even if you are right.” Platini also explained to Luzon that Israel must use diplomatic channels to “thwart” the Palestinian attempt to isolate it from the international soccer stage.

This report is from an Israeli web journal ynetnews, and so may be presenting a biased view of what Platini actually said.

However, it is stunning and totally unacceptable that Platini should appear to take sides against the Palestinian FA and, by implication, that the racism behind Israeli “could be right”. Does he not understand the facts of repression of Palestinian football and of Palestinian citizens of Palestine and Israel?

Furthermore, Platini appears to be inducing the Israelis to use interfere through diplomatic channels in what is essentially a football matter. This runs directly counter to FIFA Statute 17 which demand that football operates independently of any third party. Again, this is totally unacceptable.